If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Re: Help with checking SSD and HDD connections please..

Finally, once I've don the install and I am ready to plug the 2 HDD's back in. Should I do one at a time, reboot, then do the other one? Or can I do both at the same time?

you should now go into fault finding mode.
If you want to trace the cause of the issue , dont plug the other 2 drives in until you are 100% sure the system is stable.
Format the SSD & load win. Install drivers one at a time & move on when sure its stable .
It may even be a vid card issue, some faulty vids cards are file untill you install the driver .

Re: Help with checking SSD and HDD connections please..

I thought I'd give an update on this. After the last freeze I mentioned in my last post, I did a clean install of Win 10. I made sure to do the install with only the SSD connected, made sure that seemed stable for a few days then added the other 2 HDD's later. I used slightly different MB connectors for the drives this time, but still the Intel ones only.
So far, after almost a week, I haven't had the freezing problem yet.
I have had one crash, but it's not the same freezing problem as last time, as this time the PC had already rebooted itself overnight before I realised. (The previous problem was literally a freeze, no rebooting, and only way was hard power off). This crash seemed to trace back to a NVidia driver, and there was just a new update available last week, so I have now installed the latest driver.

So, I'm quietly optimistic that it may be fixed now. I have created a system restore point and will now slowly add back all my other apps.

Question - I thought about using Virtual Box to test some program installations there first - good idea? Or more trouble than it's worth?

Re: Help with checking SSD and HDD connections please..

Hi, I know this thread is a bit old but I wanted to check back in. I am still having problems with the random freezing.
I have got the assistance of a tech, I decided it was getting beyond my own skill levels. He informed me that as there was no BSOD and visible error message, the cause of the freezing would most likely be CPU, RAM or PSU. He said any other hardware problems would give a crash notification/BSOD - and not just a total freeze with no message, like I am having. (And to clarify exactly what I mean by this - when I get freezes, the entire system is unresponsive - keyboard, mouse do nothing, CTRL-ALT-DEL does nothing, no error messages or BSOD are shown, the only fix is to force power off via the case power button. I also have TeamViewer running, and when I check teamviewer from another device, the PC shows offline, so I am reasonably confident it's not just a monitor issue only)
He did a warranty claim on my CPU (which took about 4 weeks from Intel!!), but the freezing is still occurring. I have also put in a different PSU, and still am having freezing. Both him and I have already done RAM testing (one stick at a time, different slots, stress tested it etc) and we believe the RAM is OK.

I'm getting really frustrated and don't know what to try next. Should he look at the motherboard next? Is it worth trying brand new RAM?
I was also thinking graphics card, but he said same thing - if it was a graphics card problem, it wouldn't result in the total freezing like I'm having.
I also don't think it's software conflicts, as since my last full reinstall I have really only installed the minimum software (browsers, MS office, plus a few monitoring programs like CPUID, HWMonitor, etc).
All drivers are up to date and I have latest BIOS etc.

Really hoping you guys have some further suggestions here for this very frustrating problem! I do plan to get the techs help again but I have no past history with him, hence looking for a second opinion here.

Thanks!

PS - Have also installed the latest Win 10 update creators update but still am having the freeze

Re: Help with checking SSD and HDD connections please..

RAM (or anything else) doesn't always have to be faulty to cause issues - occasionally you can find combinations of hardware that just don't work well together but work fine when tested in other combinations. I had a PC with an occasional issue that I never figured out until I replaced it and discovered it worked fine without the graphics card and the graphics card worked fine in my new PC but when those parts were used together it occasionally rebooted itself. I've also had a motherboard that seemed faulty until I tried a different brand of RAM, there's a reason the manufacturers publish compatibility lists.

None of which means it is the RAM, just that it could be. There are no absolutes with PC's, just because a fault doesn't seem like it could be caused by any particular piece of hardware or software doesn't mean it isn't being. Plugging in a hard drive or some usb devices can prevent you even getting to the BIOS if they are faulty and that wouldn't seem likely if I hadn't experienced it. Plugging in a smartphone to charge it stopped a friends PC from booting. Point is random stuff can cause weird issues and saying it can't be the graphics card or the RAM or the power point it's connected to or whatever else will stop you actually testing to eliminate them, don't assume - test.

One think you could try is reducing down to 8GB and running with that until the freeze happens again then switching to the other 8GB. If it is a tiny fault with one of the chips that should prove it and 8GB is enough to run smoothly for most applications. Also when testing RAM you need to use the long extended tests and run them multiple times to be sure.

Re: Help with checking SSD and HDD connections please..

Thanks for the suggestions.

@dugimodo I might try further /longer testing with the RAM, nothing to really lose at this point by trying it.
Would you agree with the techs suggestions that this type of freezing is likely to only be RAM, CPU or PSU? If the RAM testing doesn't solve anything, I will take it back to the tech and was thinking to suggest MB replacement...

@ Lawrence, when I got the PC back from the tech, once it froze again, I checked for BIOS updates and have already installed that latest one. So far, no other noticeable problems for me, that weren't already there. Seems like most people who have had some issues with it are overclockers?

Re: Help with checking SSD and HDD connections please..

Originally Posted by Chikara

Thanks for the suggestions.

@dugimodo I might try further /longer testing with the RAM, nothing to really lose at this point by trying it.
Would you agree with the techs suggestions that this type of freezing is likely to only be RAM, CPU or PSU? If the RAM testing doesn't solve anything, I will take it back to the tech and was thinking to suggest MB replacement...

@ Lawrence, when I got the PC back from the tech, once it froze again, I checked for BIOS updates and have already installed that latest one. So far, no other noticeable problems for me, that weren't already there. Seems like most people who have had some issues with it are overclockers?

Dont expect much from RAM testing
RAM has to be REALLY bad to fail RAM tests. Ive had faulty RAM that could fault , then go months without an issue & just fault again out of the Blue

With intermittent faults ,no point in replacing the m/b unless you replace the RAM.
This type of fault could be anything, not just RAM, CPU or PSU.
Have you tried another hard drive ?

Re: Help with checking SSD and HDD connections please..

I'd agree that it's likely, but likely is not definitely. Once you've eliminated the Likely it's time to look at the unlikely. I would start with the RAM again but there is only so much testing you can do. I think running with half of it at a time as suggested is a good start, the odds of it all being faulty is slim so if it's RAM related one half or the other should prove stable.

As I said you need to test rather than assume. For example don't eliminate the graphics card as a the culprit based on the assumption that it's unlikely without any actual testing. That sort of thinking is how I put up with a faulty PC for 2 years because I didn't think the graphics card could be causing it (tested fine in other PCs). The downside is with an occasional fault you need to be able to run without something for a long period of time to eliminate it, which is pretty difficult with some essential components.

I did read back through the thread but It didn't all stick, does this freeze happen completely randomly or is it when you are doing something in particular? If for example it's during gaming there's more stress on your components than if it happens watching youtube. Even after all this it's still possible it's a software issue as well, a bad driver or a corrupt windows system file or something could cause the lockup as easily as hardware could.